BFR Developments

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Today they continued toppling that Pad 1 Launch Mount legs. As of now, only one remains standing.

Another big development was them shortening the left 'chopstick' arm on the Pad 1 tower. They cut off a portion and lowered it with a crane.

https://x.com/Blobifie/status/1991551484790821266

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The Last Leg:

This looks like the propellant flex lines that led to the Booster Quick Disconnect (BQD)

(Photo by Carlos Nunez)

Pad 1 launched eleven Starship flights... it's sad to see it end like this...

But it's easy to see how cooked it is. It wouldn't have lasted much longer.

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Big setback at Starbase!

B18, the first Version.3 booster, is at the Masseys test site for structural testing. And last night they were pressure testing it with ambient temperature nitrogen gas, when B18's LOX tank burst explosively, ripping the vehicle wide open. There were no injuries to any personnel or damage to the facilities at the test site, but B18 is a total loss.

The question now is why this happened. Was it a manufacturing defect? Or was it a design defect inherent in the V.3 design itself? Either way, it's not good.

Everyone is saying that the expected Flight 12 launch in January 2026 will almost certainly be pushed back as they get to the bottom of this and rectify it. Given the ambitious goals set for 2026 (ship catch, extended orbital fuel storage and orbital refueling demonstrations for HLS) this could be a major setback.

And everyone is exclaiming that B18 didn't crumple and is still standing. That's being attributed to the much bigger and beefier fuel transfer tubes in the V.3 LOX tank.

(Helicopter photo by Jordan Guidry of WAI)

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Here's what Eric Berger thinks:

https://arstechnica.com/space/2025/11/ne...ly-friday/

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(Helicopter photo by Jordan Guidry)

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Mauricio managed to get an extraordinary cutaway-view flyover photograph of the v.3 propellant manifold inside B18. (There are 33 engines and fuel and oxidizer feeds to each one, along with valves and filters, so it gets complicated down there.)

The large cylindrical tube that's visible in the center is the transfer tube that serves as the liquid-methane header. (And it's what was keeping the booster upright after the LOX tank blowout.) There's another similar sized tank hidden behind it that serves as the LOX header. (The headers are smaller fuel tanks that contain landing fuel and oxidizer when the main tanks are nearly dry, so as to ensure proper flow, mass distribution and to minimize sloshing.)

SpaceX hasn't provided much information about the cause of the mishap (just that it's under investigation) but examination of the flyover photos provides some clues. The remains of a blown-out COPV (carbon-overwrapped pressure vessel) is visible in some of the photos, as are puncture holes in the transfer tube and the far side of the LOX tank skin, indicating high velocity fragments moving away from the direction in which the skin is blown out, suggesting that something explosive happened there.

So the growing consensus among Starbase watchers (some of whom are engineers) is that a COPV or the high pressure gas lines/valves feeding it ruptured explosively, throwing out fragments. That in turn ruptured the skin of the pressurized (to much lower pressure) LOX tank, essentially popping it.

Remember that an exploding COPV is what took out Ship 36. That one produced a huge fireball because the ship was loaded with propellant for a static fire. In this B18 case, the booster was only filled with inert gas. If this mishap was indeed caused by a bursting COPV, SpaceX might want to look at how they are sourced and how they are handled once SpaceX purchases them. They might want to pressurize them to lower pressure or specify higher pressure COPVs as well. COPVs are well-understood technology widely used in aerospace, from rockets to commercial airliners.

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Last night they cut the main CH4 tank off the top and removed it with a crane.

Humans for scale today on lifts next to the shortened B18

(Photo by Carlos Nunez)

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And today they attached the Ship Quick Disconnect arm to the Pad 2 tower. This is the arm that rotates out to supply propellant (and electrical/data connections) to the second stage ship on the pad, then pulls away quickly at launch. Its installation went a lot quicker than I expected.

(Photo by Starship Gazer)

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Before the arrival of SpaceX, the Brownsville TX area was the prototypical Texas border town. It was one of the poorest metropolitan areas in the United States and majority Hispanic. Many visitors thought that it resembled Matamoros across the river more than it did an American city.

Now, just in 2024-2025, SpaceX has paid more than $350 million dollars in taxes supporting local schools, services and infrastructure.

If you count total economic impact, SpaceX has pumped some $13 billion into the local community. Starbase employs some 4,000 current full-time jobs, and that is scheduled to increase 100% in 2026 to 8,000. And these are very high paying jobs by local standards. Most of the employees are local, not just California transplants. Many of these jobs are skilled trades positions that don't require a college degree. That payroll supports an estimated 24,000 additional jobs locally in restaurants, stores, hotels, tourism etc.

The relocation of SpaceX's headquarters to Starbase and the constant pace of mind-boggling construction signal that SpaceX is committed to the Rio Grande Valley for the long haul. There are plans for workforce training and further development of the aerospace sector. There are collaborations with the local University of Texas Rio Grande Valley campus.

Locals talk about how the whole attitude of the RGV has changed. Where in the past, they felt that they were forgotten and ignored, and were embarrassed by where they lived, today the Rio Grande Valley has become exciting and cool. One of the most exciting places on the planet for those in the know. Visitors come from around the world to see it. Locals are proud of their region. Visitors talk about how much it's changed recently. New construction and development is visible all over. Tourism is taking off and high skill manufacturing is appearing.

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They have completed stacking Booster 19. This is the second of the new Version.3 boosters, after B18 had its unfortunate accident at Masseys.

(SpaceX photo)

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